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Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a fictional character, a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston and one of the three characters to be continuously published by DC Comics since the company's inception in 1944. Marston's wife Elizabeth Holloway Marston, and Olive Byrne, who lived with the couple in a polyamorous relationship, served as exemplars for the character and greatly influenced her creation. Wonder Woman first appeared in All Star Comics #8, published in December 1941. She is a founding member of the Justice League of America. In addition to comic books, the character has been in the media such as the famous 1975 to 1979 television adaptation starring Lynda Carter, as well as in animation like the Super Friends and Justice League animated series, including the recent Justice League: The New Frontier animated movie and a forthcoming animated feature due out soon. Princess Diana is a member of a fictional tribe of Amazons, based on the Amazons of Greek mythology. Her name is reflective of the mythological character, Diana or Artemis. Her mother is Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons. When Diana leaves the Amazons to travel to the world outside, she is known as both Wonder Woman, and as Princess Diana. As Wonder Woman, she was awarded several gifts by the Olympian gods, including the Lasso of Truth created from the Golden Girdle of Gaea and indestructible bracelets formed from the shield Aegis of Athena. For several years she was described in the splash page of each story, as "beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, swifter than Hermes, and stronger than Hercules." Fictional Character history Main article: Fictional history of Wonder Woman Introduced in All Star Comics #8 in December 1941, Wonder Woman has endured multiple interpretations and adaptions since her inception. The details of her abilites, relationships and orgin have changed and evolved over time. Intitially, Wonder Woman is an Amazon champion, armed with bulletproof bracelets, magic lasso, and Amazonian training, who wins the right to return Steve Trevor to "Man's World" and fight the evil of the Nazis. While Wonder Woman fights both Nazis and crime, her appearances had a noted sexual subtext, leading to debates over whether it provided an outlet for Dr. Marston's sexual fantasies or whether it was meant to appeal or influence, the developing sexuality of young readers. During this period Wonder Woman joined the Justice Society of America as the first female member; albeit as the group's secretary, despite being one of the most powerful members. During the Silver Age, Wonder Woman's origin was revamped, along with other characters during the era. The new orgin story, increased the characters Hellenistic roots, receiving the blessing of each deity in her crib, Diana is destined to become "beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, stronger than Hercules, and swifter than Mercury". At the end of the 1960s, under the guidance of Mike Sekowsky, Wonder Woman surrenders her powers to remain in "Man's World" rather than accompany her fellow Amazons to another dimension. A mod boutique owner, the powerless Diana Prince acquires a Chinese mentor named I Ching. Under I Ching's guidance, Diana learns martial arts and weapons skills, and engages in adventures that encompassed a variety of genres, from espionage to mythology. The character would later return to her super-powered roots and the World War II-era, (due to the popularity of the Wonder Woman TV series), in Justice League of America and the eponomys title, respectively. Following Crisis on Infinite Earths, Pérez and Potter wrote Wonder Woman as a feminist character, a princess and emissary from Themyscira to Patriarch's world. The four part "Sacrifice" storyline ended with Diana breaking the longstanding do-not-kill code. Powers and abilities Before Crisis on Infinite Earths Originally, Wonder Woman was able to will a tremendous amount of brain energy into her muscles and limbs by Amazon training which endowed her with extraordinary strength and agility. The TV series show took up this notion; "... we are able to develop our minds and physical skills ..." Nazi Wonder Woman" 1976; and in the first episode of Super Friends 1973 Diana states to Aquaman "... the only thing that can surpass super strength is the power of the brain". In early Wonder Woman stories, Amazon training involves strengthening this ability using pure mental energy. Her powers would be removed in accordance with Aphrodite's Law if she allowed herself to be bound or chained by a male. With the inclusion of Wonder Girl and Wonder Tot in Diana's backstory, writers provided new explanations of her powers; the character became capable of feats which her sister Amazons could not equal. Wonder Woman Volume One #105, reveals that Diana was formed by clay by the Queen of the Amazons and was imbued with the attributes of the Greek gods by Athena - "beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, swifter than Hermes, and stronger than Hercules." Although Wonder Woman’s mythos was returned to its original interpretation between 1966 and 1967, new abilities were added: super breath (to blow jet streams or transform water into snow); ventriloquism; imperviousness to extremes of heat and cold; ride the air currents as if flying; mental telepathy (even to project images); microscopic vision; the ability to vibrate into another dimension, and others which are listed in the Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes, Volume Two (1976). Depending on the writer, Diana's invulnerability and power varied greatly with the story needs. After Crisis on Infinite Earths Diana possesses a host of superhuman powers granted to her by the gods and goddesses of Olympus, gifts which have been stated to be equal to their own abilities. Primary among these are superhuman strength and stamina, which she draws from a mystical link to the Earth itself granted by Demeter. Diana is one of the strongest and most powerful superheroes in the DC Universe. Her stamina affords her an incredible degree of resistance to blunt force trauma. However, Diana's skin is not invulnerable and can be pierced by sharp projectiles. Diana has heightened resistance to magical attacks and manipulation. She is experienced in battling foes who use sorcery as a weapon. She heals at an accelerated rate due to her superhuman metabolism. She is a master of armed and unarmed combat, proficient with nearly every weapon of her culture, especially the bow and the javelin. She has at times engaged in battle with beings such as Superman, Darkseid, or the Olympian Gods and held her own against them. She has enhanced senses, as well as being able to communicate with all forms of animals. The God Hermes gifted Diana with the powers of super-human speed and unassisted flight. She possesses the "sight of Athena", or the gift of increased insight, allowing her to sense others' emotions, and is now fully immune to mind control. Diana possesses great wisdom and intelligence, giving her heightened proficiency with languages, being able to speak her native Themysciran, Ancient and Modern Greek, English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Mandarin Chinese (she expressed "difficulty" with the tones of Cantonese during an interview with Lois Lane), Russian, and Hindi. Wonder Woman is an accomplished strategist and tactician, leader, and diplomat. She has been shown to astrally project herself into various lands of myth. In some cases, she has shown the ability to place individuals into a state of sleep while under the power of her golden lasso. Queen Hippolyta used this technique on Diana herself during the Our Worlds at War event. Weapons Diana has numerous powerful weapons at her disposal, but her signature weapons are her indestructible bracelets and the Lasso of Truth. The Bracelets were formed from the remnants of Zeus's legendary Aegis shield, and Diana's superhuman reflexes and senses allow her to deflect or reflect projectiles and bullets, including automatic weapons fire, as well as energy blasts, including multi-vector attacks. The Lasso of Truth is absolutely unbreakable and has restrained beings as powerful as Superman, Captain Marvel, and the gods Ares and Hades. The Lasso burns with a magical aura called the Fires of Hestia, forcing anyone within the Lasso's confines to be truthful. The Fires can restore lost memories, dispel illusions, renew the wielder's body, protect those encircled by it from magical and nonmagical attacks, and even cure insanity. Wonder Woman's golden tiara has also doubled as a throwing weapon, used for long-distance attack or defense. Diana used the Sandals of Hermes to cross the dimensional impasse between Themyscira and the outside world, but they were passed on first to Artemis, and later to Wonder Girl. Diana also once wielded the Gauntlet of Atlas, which magnifies the physical strength and stamina of the wearer by a factor of ten. The Golden Age and Silver Age Wonder Woman used an invisible airplane that could be mentally controlled. It was variously described as being either a creation of Amazon technology or the legendary winged horse Pegasus transformed into an aircraft. Its appearance varied as well, originally having a propeller and later being drawn as a jet aircraft, resembling a fighter plane. The Post-Crisis Wonder Woman has at her disposal a small lightweight disc of alien (Lansinar) technology that, when triggered by her thoughts, transforms into a transparent version of whatever object or vehicle is appropriate for her needs. However, following the One Year Later continuity jump, Diana was given a new invisible plane, created by Wayne Industries. Diana occasionally uses additional weaponry in formal battle, such as ceremonial golden armor complete with golden wings, war-skirt and chest-plate, and a golden helmet in the shape of an Eagle's head. Her deadliest piece of battle-gear is a magically forged sword (again a gift from Hephaestus), so sharp that it can "carve the electrons off an atom". In Other Media Television 1975-77 TV Series See: Wonder Woman (Lynda Carter) Film 2009 Animated Film See: Wonder Woman (2009 Animated Film) Individual film In January 2001, producer Joel Silver approached Todd Alcott to write a Wonder Woman screenplay, with Silver Pictures backing the project.] Early gossip linked actresses such as Mariah Carey, Sandra Bullock, and Catherine Zeta-Jones to the role of Wonder Woman.] Leonard Goldberg, speaking in a May 2001 interview, named Sandra Bullock as a strong candidate for the project. Bullock claimed that she was approached for the role, while Lucy Lawless and Chyna both expressed interest. Lawless indicated that she would be more interested if Wonder Woman was portrayed as a "flawed hero." The screenplay then went through various drafts written by Alcott, Jon Cohen, Becky Johnston, and Philip Levens. By August 2003, Levens was replaced by screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis. In March 2005, Warner Bros. and Silver Pictures announced that Joss Whedon would write and direct the film adaptation of Wonder Woman. Whedon's salary was reported to be between $2 to $3 million. Since Whedon was directing Serenity at the time, and required time to research Wonder Woman's background, he did not begin the screenplay until late 2005. According to Joel Silver, the script would cover Wonder Woman's origin and include Steve Trevor: "Trevor crashes on the island and they go back to Man's World." Silver wanted to film Wonder Woman in Australia once the script was completed. While Whedon stated in May 2005 that he would not cast Wonder Woman until he finished the script, Charisma Carpenter and Morena Baccarin expressed interest in the role. In February 2007, Whedon departed from the project, citing script differences with the studio. Whedon reiterated: "I never had an actress picked out, or even a consistent sic front-runner. I didn't have time to waste on casting when I was so busy air-balling on the script." Whedon stated that with the Wonder Woman project left behind, he would focus on making his film Goners. "I would go back in a heartbeat if I believed that anybody believed in what I was doing. The lack of enthusiasm was overwhelming." A day before Whedon's departure from Wonder Woman, Warner Bros. Pictures and Silver Pictures purchased a spec script written by Matthew Jennison and Brent Strickland. Set during World War II, the script impressed executives at Silver Pictures. However, Silver has made clear that he purchased the script because he didn't want it floating around in the industry; although it has good ideas, he doesn't wish for the Wonder Woman film to be a period piece. By April 2008, Silver hired Jennison and Strickland to write a new (modern day) script that would not depict Wonder Woman's origin, but explore Paradise Island's history. Undeveloped Justice League film A Justice League film was slated for a 2009 release, before being put on indefinite hiatus in April 2008. It was based upon the DC Comics publication, the Justice League which has included a number of superheroes in the past including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Green Arrow, Atom, Hawkman, Black Canary, and Captain Marvel. An 29 October 2007 article quoted Joel Silver as stating that due to the impending release of Justice League, the Wonder Woman film will be placed on moratorium: 'They're going to make the Justice League movie, and we're kind of pausing on Wonder Woman now ... Let them go ahead and do that picture first' ... The Amazon superhero from the DC Comics series will be a major part of the upcoming JLA. 'And if that comes together, Wonder Woman will be a part of that story,' Silver said. 'And then we'll see where we go from there. But we struggled with it for a while. I hope that we can solve it and make it one day.' A number of actresses had reportedly been under consideration for the role of Wonder Woman in the Justice League film. Jessica Biel was approached for the role, but passed on it, while Missy Peregrym, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Teresa Palmer, Shannyn Sossamon, and Christina Milian expressed interest. It had been reported that Australian supermodel Megan Gale was cast as the heroine. In early January 2008, it was reported that production of the JLA film was delayed due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike. When asked if the film would still affect the solo Wonder Woman movie in April 2008, Silver said it would not as the Justice League film had been shelved. Gallery *Wonder Woman/Gallery Category: Characters Category:Justice League Members Category:Justice Society Members